Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-10-23
DAILY HERALD.
GATH.
George Alfred TOwnsend's
Opinion of the Coast.
A VISIT To CALIFORNIA
Will Better Answer the Gener al
Needs of American Tourists
Than Going to Europe.

George Alfred Townsend the we'll
known writer, at present on the Pa
cific Coast on a visit, has, in a lettel
under date of the 10th inst. to the
Cincinnati Enquirer, given the resul
Of his observations. In this the writer
says:
81 am not sure that visit to the
Pacific Coast at the present day will
not better answer the general needs o.
our American tourists than going te
Europe. Once in Europe, there is
very little nature to be enjoyed, fol
one is a victim there of hotels con.
tinually and martyr to his baggage.
There is
NO PLACE IN THE OLD WORLD
Where q man can camp out with his
family and be exempt from intrusion
and from severe weather. Nor can an
American in Europe make any money
while travelling in the way OF invest
ments and speculation. 1t is nothing
on that side OF the water but spending
money and suffering heavy shave In
the different kinds of currency as they
are exchanged from country to coun-
try. But not infrequently the Amerl-
can who comes with his family 10 this
new Pacific West experiences the
greatest Joy of all to an Anglo-saXon-
that of clearing his travelling expenses.
and perhaps making profit by pick
ing up ideas and the spirit OF move
ment from his fellow-countrymen al
ready established.
On the Pacific Coast there is so much
land and 80 much good climate that a
town. if it were emptied at the East OF
all its inhabitants, could find altitude,
scenery and game at next to no ex-
pense. Besides, there is much OF the
iayor of Europe in California; here
are Italian and French restaurants IN
both the large and small towns. You
get the nearest approach to Alpine
lscenery i'm our country in the abrupt
mountains between the Sierra Neva-
das and the coast. You experience a
real change OF animal and vegetable
life: whatever is found in a Partisan
restaurant is in the San Francisco
markets. If you like tulip artichoke
with oil dressing, here it is to be had;
They make olive oils on this coast and
wines as we'll as they make them In
France and Italy. Much of the flavor
Of what is called the Riviera is to be
had on the high grounds overhanging
the Pacific. There is fishing here with
ont any deception. Here are some In
dams. but no annoyance to anybody
except to catch bait and run errands.
As for bits of waterfalls and.yawning
chasns and queer grades and ascents
Of railroads, they are to be
SOUND IN EVERY DIRECTION,
We have besides in California the
inexpressible relief OF no sea sickness
in coming over and of hearing our
own language pronounced so that we
CON understand it. You can pick up
considerable of Asia as well as OF
Europe on this coast. l stood at the
Chinese Consul's an hour or two yes
terday, looking at the big dragon being
naradedi and il there should be any
more OF China than this IN emma
proper it would probably weary me.
Europe nowhere yields SO many
kinds OF productions as California. An
Enolishman likes apricots and plums
and English walnuts, and here they
grow. In the environs OF San Fran
cisco itself you will see fig trees,
almond-bearing trees, live oaks, great
groves of apricots, pears, cheaper
than elsewhere in the world, melons,
citrSns and oranges. A bottle of pure
claiet costs here by the keg about ten
cents. A gave a shilling, or twenty
five cents, for single peach at
Brighton, England, in August last,
and here can buy three for nickel;
I think it probable that a man could
live In California without meat, mere
" upon fruit and wine. AS for money,
making, il the mere exchange OF
troperty under the boom, so-called,
can be normal, there has been more
money made out here this summer
than has been spent In Europe by
Americans.
With the completion OF the railroad
system of this coast, so that all por-
tions of it are attainable within a few
hours. the definite centers OF settle
ment have been guessed out, and all
around them lily spectators IRON
all parts of our country, and property
sometimes changes hands many times
in week, each time for more than
before.
There has been no railroad from
San Francisco to Oregon until the
present summer, and gap still ex-
lists in the line of about fourteen miles,
which will probably be extinguished
before winter, consequently the
NORTHERN VALLEYS OF CALIFORNIA
Are coming into the speculative field
under observation as much as South
ern California has been exploited
since the opening of the railroad few
years back.
/ visited Los Angeles sixteen years
ago, when it had, perhaps, 5000 souls.
Now they have erected beautiful hous-
es in and out OF that town, covering
an area Of miles, and the place has at
this moment or is bound to have
about rs, 900 people within the present
twelvemonth, which is. suppose, the
population of Columbus, Ohio, or of Sy-
racuse, N. Y, or of Worcester, Mass.
which is the second town in sixe OF
that old Commonwealth. There is
some contentious among the Califor-
mans about the relative merits OF the
south and the north, and find in Sal
francisco perhaps more wine from
the northern part Of the State thar
from the extreme south. Besides
these northern districts are nearer thu
market. The big vineyard of Gov
ernor Stanford, which is said to be tn
Iargest in the world, is said to b
something like 200 miles northeast Q
San Francisco, and contains nearl
5000 acres of fruit.
have been about so rapidly an,
a..n ,aan On MANY PERSONS since